The Incredible Massive Letterpress Giveaway!

Howdy from Chicago. My name is Kelly and I have a little letterpress shop called Paper Stories. Back in December I decided to organize a letterpress swap, thinking I would be lucky if I found 10 printers to participate. After putting the word out and sending emails to some of my favorite printers, I ended up with a HUGE print exchange with a wonderfully diverse group totally 38 printers. With a little trial and error on my part trying to figure out the best way to exchange everything, the basic premise was this: Everyone creates an original letterpress art print, make enough copies for everyone in the swap, & send them all to me with a few bucks for shipping. The printers had until March to complete their prints and it wasn't until just a few weeks ago that the massive undertaking of sorting, arranging, packing and shipping the prints back to everyone was complete.

Involved in the swap are not only some well-known seasoned veterans but first-time printers alike. Yet regardless of their experience behind the press, everyone participating took the time to create a well thought out and unique piece and as the organizer of the swap, I couldn't be more proud. I think the best part for me was the opportunity to meet some amazing folks. Quite a few of us actually met up at the National Stationery Show in May and have become cyber pals since. I have already been getting requests from folks about next year's swap or even the possibility of a holiday letterpress ornament swap. Hmmm. We shall see.

Now to the part you really want to know about... The Incredible Massive Letterpress Giveaway part! All of the printers were kind enough to include a few extra prints for giveaways and Jan was kind enough to let me share our giveaway with the lovely Poppytalk readers. So here is the scoop; We have not one, not two, but THREE prizes to give away to some lucky readers. You will have until the end of the day on Thursday to enter. Winners will be chosen on Friday.

1st Prize a COMPLETE set of all 38 prints from the swap-with a value of over $800-

2nd & 3rd Prizes each get 1/2 a complete set - 19 prints each(the half-sets will be evenly divided for a good mix)-with a value of about $400 each-

So here's what you need to do. Below is the list of participants. Visit the websites from at least two of the participants whose work you really like. In the comments below, let us know your what your two favorite works are.

For a full peek at all of the prints/printers involved in the swap, visit this Flickr page complete with photographs and names (documented by Bon Vivant Press) . Many of the prints were limited edition runs and several of the printers have a few copies left for sale on their various websites so if you aren't a lucky winner, you can still pick up some kick-ass art.

GOOD LUCK!

Editors Note: We are honoured that Kelly and the swap participants have chosen Poppytalk to share this wonderful giveaway. Safari browsers note: You many not be able to comment using Safari after the list gets to 80 comments or so. If this is the case, please use another browser such as Firefox to leave a comment. If you do not have Firefox please email us at poppytalkblog[at]yahoo[dot]ca and we will enter your name for you. One comment/entry per person. Comments/entries at this post only. We are so stoked about this! Good luck to everyone!

Jan Halvarson

630 comments:

Wow! I love print exchanges! I love that this one is all letterpress too.

So my two very favorites, although it was hard to pick, are Dear Deer by SeesawPress. I also love Sneakers by Olivia San Mateo of Olive-Route.com. It's a beautiful print, and Jack Purcell's happen to be my most favorite shoe :)

What an awesome giveaway! I came across Albertine Press recently and immediately loved it, especially the bright ideas letterpress pocket notebooks. I feel like I could come up with good ideas all the time if I was jotting notes in one of those.

I also loved Hijirik's Live What you Love print in yellow. It's bright, bold, and motivating! Everything I need to start the day off right.

A really close third for me was Night Owl Paper Goods' fork & spoon jotter. Adorable for jotting down recipes!

Wow!!!! Fantastic giveaway, like everyone I love them all and have just spend hours looking at all these wonderful sites.Hard to pick favorites but after taking a deep breath I say Iris by Hijirik Studio. I'm a big fan also of Clocks by Albertine Press. Thank you for introducing us to new letterpress people :o)

What an amazing collection ... it is sooo very difficult to choose just two ... however ... Night Owl's Panda friend is super cute and I just love Paper stories Happy Birthday card designed by Angela Navarra ... fingers legs and toes all crossed!

Whoa - this is definitely a massive letterpress giveaway! Thanks in advance!

I was poring through all the photos and sites, love letterpress so much, it's hard to decide. But if I had to pick I would say the folk series by Sycamore Street Press, because it's just beautiful and classic! And also the vintage chairs by Bespoke Press - so lovely chic!

Everyone is a WINNER who views these wonderful letterpress prints! All of them are so beautiful and unique! I choose Teapots and Loops (Paper Stories) and Feathers and Twigs (Cindy Tomczyk) as my favorites, but it was almost impossible to choose from all the great pieces. Thank you for the opportunity to be a proud owner of the prints! Alina Z.

Paring my favorites down to just two was quite the task... but I think my two overall favorites are Golden Folksy Floral Rosette by Night Owl Paper Goods and Onward & Upward by Angela of See Saw Designs.

There really are so many lovely pieces though. Thanks for the awesome opportunity!

I adore the "lark" collection from Sycamore Street Press. They're quirky, funny cards and beautiful too. I also love the oversized Keep on the Sunny Side postcard from YeeHaw! That's one of my favourite songs and the design is just perfect on the card! I like the idea of oversized things too and it works so well with this card!

I adore the "lark" collection from Sycamore Street Press. They're quirky, funny cards and beautiful too. I also love the oversized Keep on the Sunny Side postcard from YeeHaw! That's one of my favourite songs and the design is just perfect on the card! I like the idea of oversized things too and it works so well with this card!

This is such an exciting way to introduce a group of wonderful designers!

The name "Night Owl Paper Goods" definitely caught my eye (since it's almost 3am here in CA). I like their button flower card collection that reuses their paper scraps to create more unique cards. I love that it's a greenie idea.

I also love the simplicity of 12fifteen's works. My favorites are the Indian Summer prints. They're lovely, and it's my favorite season!

These are all stunning! However, I must say my runaway favorite is the "Cobalt Print" by Sycamore Street Press. My mother grew up in Madrid and still has a small but wonderful collection of Spanish tile and serving plates. The combination of royal blue and white used in the print is often used on Spanish ceramics, and so I have a soft spot for it because it reminds me of my mom! (it's great that Sycamore Street Press is an environmentally friendly company, too!)My second favorite is "Iris" by HIjirik Studio. Such a simple idea, but still fresh and clean.Thanks for hosting the giveaway and for sharing pictures of the exchange. What a great idea!

holy cow, what a giveaway! i am swooning just thinking about being able to touch a feel all of these lovelies.two of my favorites are the feathers and twings by cindy tomczyk and the detailing on the swap card by robin beth designs. they're all just lovely!thank you for offering this giveaway!

Wow! This is a toughie as I am a fan of ALL these artists. I also love Sara Parrott's Pink Peony print from Bon Vivant (it would look so sweet in my little girls' room!) and I love to get lost in the colorful and graphic mandalas from Shimmer Studio. Love the calming and peaceful, yet vibrant one shown here in blue. Thanks so much to Kelly at Paper Stories for conceiving this!

I think I love them all, but forced to choose its Unfinished Indian by Mark Maroney of Mine Ink Press and Teapots and hoops from paperstories, however I must say I think Roll and Tumble are brilliant too!

Hi, It is great meeting some great new artists I hadn't visited before.

I fell in love with Parrott Design Studio. I love their color palette, the concept, their naturalistic themes in beautiful new colors. Since I have to peak one, it will have to be her peonies. (and her frogs. And the strawberries, so juicy!)

My other favorite is Zara Gonzalez. I loved what she writes about herself:"I’m a twenty-eight year old girl going on twelve or forty depending on the day". It feels so me! I pick the girl in rollerskates because it so makes me feel like moving forward. Very encouraging.

oh man, I am just starting to get stuff hung in our new place and man oh man would I LOVE to win this! It's hard picking two, but I enjoyed both Olive Route & Three Red Hens. I own a print from Hijirik Studios and adore it!

Well, I've got to admit, I did'nt take the time to visit every participant (but I bookmark this post so I can come back later!), but visit the first 6-7 ones: I love numerology notes of afavoritedesign, as well as chocolate pocket journal and the world notes of Albertine. I was also pleased to discover feedsack of the month club of the Handmaiden!

Oh how difficult to choose just two, they are ALL so wonderful (have some serious online shopping to do after having looked at all those lovely web pages). I love Poppy Print by Delphine Press and With Each Tiny Step by Roll & Tumble Press.

It's hard to choose - they're all so good!I think I have to say I really like just about everything from Night Owl Paper Goods, and from 12fifteen I really like the Indian Summer & Winter Wonderland prints :)

It's so hard to choose, I LOVE letterpress! Ok so I really like the coasters by Albertine Press. They remind me of art nouveau. I also like the invitation designs by Delphine. They are so lovely! Thanks!

I am salivating, I tell you, over this give-away. Amazing. Two of my favorite shops ever are Yee Haw and Night Owl. My favorite thing that Yee Haw does are their oversized greetings, particularly "Keep on the sunny side." I love everything that Night Owl has but if I have to choose one right now it'd be the fashionably folksy owl on that beeeautiful wood. Awesome!!!

This is absolutely incredible! So many prints to choose from...I only get to pick two? Eep! Ah, let's see...Piora i Gatazki by Cindy Tomczyk has to be my favorite, simply gorgeous...And the Poppy Print by Delphine would be my second choice, love its simplicity, and the colors are so summery.

It was really hard to pick, I agree. However, i think my favorites are the poppy's by delphine and the rule by mire ink press. The rule print is so clever! such a great way to use what is already in a print shop

I couldn't stop at two, but being a biologist it's perhaps not a surprise that Bon Vivant's frog dissection caught my eye. It looks so beautiful (not at all like I remember the actual frog)! I also was drawn to that beautiful orange poppy from Delphine Press. My poppies are in bud, about to burst out. I can only hope they'll be as beautiful.

What a fabulous giveaway! I have seen a few blog posts showing the fabulous prints, and have been coveting so many from all these great talents! It's hard to pick just 2 favorites out of all these amazing shops... I really like Hijirk's Live What You Love - a great reminder for daily life, and Sarah Parrot's peony is lovely - the little yellow bee is just the perfect touch!

I had eight favourites written down! Of those, my TWO FAV's are: Chair by Amy Stocklein (the composition, the colour, the texture...wow) and Colbalt Print by Sycamore Street Press (beautiful pattern... oh so crisp!).

Oh wow! what a great swap, and now an even better giveaway! I love all the letterpress pieces that were created for this swap, and I've had a great time taking a look at some of the participants. I'm loving the vintage chairs in magenta by bespoke press as well as the color combos used by delphine... oh, and I also love the button flower thank yous at night owl. Thanks for the chance to win!

These are AMAZING!!! What a treat to visit all these talented artists' websites. I loved them all, but my top two are Poppy Print by Delphine and Wind Powered Wishes by Visualchemist. {ooh! I hope I win!!!}

This is an amazing giveaway! I love the prints by Albertine Press and Delphine Press! Those orange flowers are beautiful! I would frame these all in little frames and hand them on my wall, such great work!!!

The word play, the fonts, the colors, the graphics...ooh I'm vekemplt! I'm going with: Night Owl's yellow feast for the eyes, and Amy Stocklein's blue chair - both Bon Vivant Press. I may have been prejudiced by getting ready to do my by kitchen in goldenrod and cobalt!

What great contest! I've only had time this morning to browse through a fraction of the sites, but here are my first favorites: Bon Vivant Press - the frog card. Roll & Tumble Press - the Wishful Thinking poster. Paper Stories - loved the whole website, including the Happy Birthday bike card.

What an awesome collection! I especially like that it includes a lot of letterpress printers I haven't heard of yet. My favorites are the Golden Folksy Floral Rosette by Night Owl Paper Goods, a company I've long admired, and Piora i Gatazki (Feathers & Twigs) by Cindy Tomczyk, someone whose work I hadn't seen. I'm about to get hitched and move into a new apartment and these would be perfect! Thanks for the shot at this excelllent giveaway.

this is amazing!! :)count me in!!my two favorites are:1. a. favorite design - click clack clunk a2 letterpress postcardi just inherited two of my gramp's antique typewriters and am anxious to get them up and running!! this is adorable!2. night owl paper goods - water otter wood postcardsometimes i think my pup looks like an otter...hehe! i love how this postcard is wood, too! i'd be tickled to receive this in the mail!thank you for the chance at receiving all of this lovely art!*

I LOVE the Golden Folksy Floral Rosette by Night Owl Paper Goods, and also Yellow Floral by Sycamore Street Press. I'm really feeling all the warm yellows and oranges right now while I get myself all jazzed up for the hot summer days around the corner!

I can't pick just two, they are all really amazing and beautifulThe prints that stand out to me are:Bird in the Clouds by YeehawindustriesTeapost and Loops by Paper StoriesGolden Folky Floral Rosette by Night Owl Paper GoodsYellow Floral by Sycamore St. PressWind Powered Wishes by Visual ChemistSneakers by Gina San Mateo

This giveaway is so amazing! I went to each and every site and it was a hard decision but I chose Night Owl Paper Goods (the sunny flowering dogwood is my fav! and its eco-friendly!) and Star Shaped Press (the Jen+Brad Program is my fav! love the scrolls). They both have amazing design styles and I absolutely love their invitations. I have a weakness for them :)

I am so excited about this because so many of my favorite letterpress artists participated, and I would love to add to my collection! My two favorites are the Cobalt Print by Sycamore Street Press and Sneakers by Olivia San Mateo.

I'm loving Three Red Hens blog and all things beardy plus i really like the pouring tea prints. I also love the whole hillbilly styling on Yee-Haw industries and in particular the red onion farmers market print, even better that your on Etsy! its that old skool back to basics vibe!

How can I choose? So many lovely and spring-inspirering prints. But I think that I end up saying that BirDog press and Paper Stories are my favorites ... would love to look at them every day! What a fun thing to do, this give away :-)

This giveaway seems too good to be true.It's almost impossible to narrow it down to just two faves but here goes-Bespoke Press- vintage chairs in MagentaNight Owl paper goods- love birdsAll others are truly fabulous also!

What a great giveaway! I have to say that my favorite print is A Ship In the Harbor by LIndsey (See Saw Designs)since I am an avid sailor myself and absolutely love to be on the water. Next I'd have to go with Yellow Floral by Sycamore Street Press, with Sometimes You Just Gotta Twirl by Enjoy Design coming in at third since I love Elise's blog.

Oh, wow, so hard to decide!!! So many nice atuff!! I think I'll pick Pink Peony by Sara Parrott and... just any thing from the Parrott Design Studio, so many nice colours!!Thanks for the give awya!!! So exciting!!!

I’ve spent my whole morning drooling over these amazing prints…imagining them in my home, thoughtfully placed in a collage on the wall, or placed in picture frames leaning on the mantle. The picture in my mind is so beautiful and warming…I may need to purchase a few of these if I’m not the winner of a prize ;)

Though seemingly impossible and completely torn, I have chosen two prints:

Golden Folksy Floral Rossette by Night Owl Paper Goods – What an absolutely perfect print. The contrast of the delicate and intricate golden flower and wooden background surrounding the print are exquisite. I am currently imagining it against my grass green walls, and am in love!

Teapots & Loops by Paper Stories – I love the colors used in this unique and fun print. How perfect would this be for a tea party invitation for yourself or a little girl?! I just love the playfulness of it all.

ps…I absolutely love that you had a letterpress swap…If only I were a printer :)

In the past year I have fallen in love with the history and detail of letterpress. I just graduated college with a graphic design degree and aspire to be in a place where i can utilize and create letterpress designs, but for now i will just look at your incredibly inspiring collection. Thank you for continuing to inspire young artists and collectors alike. I really love the "the ship in the harbor" by seesaw and the "Live What you Love" print by Hijirik. They are are all beautiful.

There are so many incredible pieces of work to choose from but I have to start with the blue print from Sycamore Street Press which you have featured before and I have always loved. After a lot of thinking the second piece is by Robin beth and is the grey daisy type flower letterpress which is stunning. Keeping my fingers crossed!!!

I'm picking the following 2 prints because they affected me in some way when I looked at them, but all the printers should be commended for their beautiful beautiful work.

The quote on Amy Stocklein's print "Chair" really struck a chord with me. Absolutely LOVE the whole print. Second would be "The Moon" by Reservoir Press. It's so hauntingly beautiful and realistic that I'm amazed it's letterpressed.

Pulling off a layered letterpress piece can be hard. Loved Golden Folksy Floral Rosette by Night Owl Paper Goods. I also really liked the mix of the hand carved and blue/white porcelain look of the Cobalt Print by Sycamore Street Press.

I adore Hijirik's Live What You Love print (and am lucky enough to own one of the limited edition ones with the heart!), and Olivia San Mateo's Sneakers. Converse shoes are my fave, so Converse + Letterpress = DELIGHT.

Thanks for having this amazing giveway, and encouraging us to explore the works of a whole bunch of wicked-talented letterpress artists. :)

This is so wonderful! I've spent about an hour and a half now checking out all the wonderful designs.

I love Night Owl Paper Goods and a. favorite design. The 'peacock feather' i love you card from Night Owl is simple but oh-so-cute.. and my boyfriend would like it too! I also can't stop looking at the carnival birthday card from a. favorite design. I love the theme and layers of color.

OOOh! I can't pick just a few favorites though! So many talented people.

I esp. love the grocery totes from yeehaw industries - the graphics are to die for! And their posters! My husband esp. loves the Zombies posters. might have to get some of those purchased for him.

Also, the Parrott Design Studio has some awesome record coasters. I don't know if I would be able to actually use them, though! (P.S the link for Parrott doesn't work. I think it's just missing one of the Rs in Parrott.)

This is absolutely amazing! So much talent and so many beautiful works! (It's just about impossible to pick 2.)

My favorites: YeeHaw's The Other Kind of Socialist print -- I'm an advertising major and this just spells solid gold design, tagline, and branding to me.Rollandtumble Press' You Are All I Need print -- Can you say romantic wording that doubles as a perfect Radiohead quote? Sweet typography and coloring? It's a home run!

wow, you weren't kidding! this is amazing! So many favs, I love Delphine's poppies and Sycamore Street's everything! I had a chance to check them out this weekend at Renegade, gorgeous and such lovely folks!

Oh, there are too many to choose from! I've bee in love with YeeHaw's work for a while, especially their Besos cards & the Ponzi Scheme Starter Kit (which I am absolutely buying for my Wall Street buddy).

This is amazing! There were so many wonderful pieces. I especially was drawn to A.favorite. I love the "ligatures" design that was part of the give away and the "ages" birthday card from their site. I also thought Amy Stocklein had wonderful designs. My favorite of hers was the "What's up?" card. Thank you so much for such a great give-away!

What a wonderful collection! Its hard to pick two. Some of these artists have been on my etsy favorites list for so long - Green Chair Press and YeeHaw. But I am also loving the Poppy Print by Delphine press and Mark Maroney's print.I'll keep everyone bookmarked in case I don't win.

On behalf of my son, who loves clocks and numbers, I love the chronology print by Albertine press and the Make the Numbers Dance print by Green Chair Press. These would be perfect additions to his room!

What a fabulous idea. I love it. My favorites would have to be Green Chair Press, Calmy it goes and 12 Fifteen's Bug Coasters. There are so many though and I really like a ton of them. Thank you for the opportunity to look at all this eye candy.

I've always liked Roll & Tumble Press' work because they are so retro inspired, and despite not being able to see many examples of Julia Juliettes work I am in love with her participating print and her graph paper thank you notes, also Yee Haw Industries is a killer, I love everything they make, like really everything.

I wish I had more time this morning to look through every one of these sites, and I’m really happy to have discovered some new letterpress designers and shops through this giveaway. Based on a quick first glance, two of my favorites are Delphine Press (have really liked their stuff for awhile; favorite today is the 2009 Letterpress Calendar with easel) and Albertine Press (chronology clocks print).

They are all just fabulous but I did pick a few faves. I love, love the little tea pot set from paper stories, love paper goods collection especially the folksy little owls and other critters and last but not least I love Amy Stocklein from etsy the little chair design. Great job everyone! Count me in for the giveaway!-junie

What a fantastic giveaway! There are so many amazing artists on that list, I had a great time poking around their sites. My faves were Night Owl Press's Spring Gourd Nest and Bespoke Press's Vintage Chair limited edition. Cool stuff!

Wow, so much wonderful stuff, hard to pick just two! I am in love with Night Owl Papergoods, the otter card and the kitten with the yarn, cuteness overload! Bird Dog Press has a great style and fantastic blog!